Simplified solution of pipeline heave induced by excavation considering lateral soil action

Based on the two-stage analysis method, a simplified solution for vertical deformation of buried pipelines induced by the excavation considering the effects of lateral soil is proposed. First, the Mindlin's solution is used to obtain the vertical additional stress due to the excavation. Second, the buried pipeline is simplified as a Euler-Bernoulli continuous beam lying on the Kerr foundation. The effects of lateral soil are further considered, and a simplified solution for vertical deformation of the existing pipeline induced by the excavation is then derived by the finite difference method. Finally, the feasibility of the proposed method is verified through comparison with the field measurements and numerical results. The results indicate that the vertical displacements of the existing pipeline calculated from the proposed method are consistent with the measured and numerical results, while the Pasternak foundation method slightly overestimates vertical displacements of the pipeline. In addition, neglecting lateral soil forces can lead to an underestimation of vertical uplift in pipeline. Parameter analysis also shows that increasing the excavation length and width will both increase pipeline heave, however, the adverse effects induced by an excavation along the long side are more serious than an excavation along the wide side; Increasing the elastic modulus of the foundation will lead to an approximate nonlinear reduction in the maximum heave displacement, maximum bending moment and maximum shearing force of the pipeline, and the greater the excavation depth, the more obvious the reduction.